Well, it’s that time of year. Instead of battling for a playoff berth themselves, the Bucs have been reduced to trying to bother those in the hunt.

The Cardinals were thought to be dead a week or so ago, but they’ve come on strong lately. Winners of five in a row, they’ve narrowed the gap to 6 behind Milwaukee and 4.5 behind wild-card leader Atlanta. Their chances are slim, but they most certainly aren’t done.

That means they certainly can’t afford to drop a series to the lowly Bucs.

Lohse has been solid for the Cards and is coming off a scoreless outing against the Brewers. The Bucco offense hasn’t been able to hit any kind of pitcher lately, but at least they’ve seen Lohse a bunch this season.

Lincoln has notched a quality start in all five games he’s started this year. The righty will continue to work towards locking down a spot in next season’s rotation.